–in vulnerable hinterland communities

A RECENT study on indigenous women and children in Guyana has revealed that in those hinterland communities labelled among the most vulnerable, there is precious little or virtually no police presence.

The study, which was done by the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs in collaboration with UNICEF, comes with an Action Plan for the rectifying of the issues.
What it has found is that while under normal circumstances, the police is considered the go-to person in cases of violence and misconduct, in many indigenous communities, this is simply not the case.

The document has revealed that of the 12 villages targetted in the survey, only four had some semblance of police presence, while the two that did not have the luxury of having any such presence formed community policing groups to help keep the peace and maintain some sort of law and order.

The four villages found to have a police presence are Baramita, Santa Rosa, Orealla and Aishalton, while the two with community policing groups are River’s View and St. Ignatius. Among those with neither police presence nor community policing groups are Chinoweng, Paramakatoi and Moraikobai.

What is interesting about the report is that the researchers found that in cases where there is no law enforcement, the village headman, also called the Toshao, and the Village Council assume the role of authority, but are not always able to handle all criminal and domestic matters.

And this is simply because of their lack of training in either dispute or conflict resolution, and their lack of the requisite knowledge of the country’s laws and confidentiality issues.
On the subject of policing groups, the researchers state in the document: “The community policing groups are informal, and not fully prepared to handle some cases, thus increasing their own vulnerabilities as a community.

“The policing groups are generally poorly trained, and some lack the equipment that can help them in patrolling and addressing cases in the community.”

This, they feel, does not bode well for those communities the study shows are plagued with alarming cases of domestic and sexual abuse, incest, child labour and trafficking among others.

According to some of the statistics released in the report, between 2013 and 2015, one in every four victims of trafficking identified in Guyana was an indigenous person, while 35 per cent of indigenous children between the ages of five and 11 were involved in some sort of economic activity.

DEEP-ROOTED CHALLENGES
Another interesting finding that came out of the report is that having a police presence may not necessarily resolve some of the issues plaguing some of the communities at reference, as in many instances, cases of sexual violence against women are not reported to the authorities but are rather settled between the perpetrator and the victim’s family or with the Village Council.

In recounting her story, one woman is quoted as saying: “I went to the police station one night after being chased by a male in the community, but it was not helpful.
“I have heard so many stories of people going to the police station to make a report and nothing came out of it and the police just forget about it.

“What I have noticed is that the village members, uncles, aunties, Village Council members can help you to deal with problems that you have in the community more than the police.”
Law enforcement, on the other hand, have a different take on the matter, as they are saying that while they may hear of such incidents while on patrol, those matters are hardly ever formally brought to their attention.

There is also a matter of differences of opinion between Toshao or Village Council and the police as to who has authority and who doesn’t.
As one policeman is quoted in the report as saying: “When certain families got problems or they do something unlawful, the Toshao believes that he can take things into his own hands and the police ain’t got no say in it.

“What the Council needs to understand is that they have to look after the welfare of the village, and we got our responsibility to uphold the laws, regulations and so on of Guyana.”
According to UNICEF, the next step is to ensure that these and other matters are addressed, and that the multi-sector Action Plan is implemented to narrow exiting gaps, especially for women and children.

The study’s findings will also be shared with such relevant authorities as the Ministries of Social Protection, Education, Health and Security as a guide when addressing the issues to which they pertain.

Ministers of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Sydney Allicock and Valerie Garrido-Lowe have stated that the government is committed to narrowing the country’s equity gap, and will continue its work to reduce challenges faced among indigenous communities.